Blogging Away Debt

This year, we are scaling back our Christmas spending. In the past, we’d have a general budget in mind and if we found some great deals that just meant that we could buy more gifts. Not this year. We will still have a budget in mind but if we get some great deals, we will take the money saved and put it towards our debt or stash it in our savings account.

Our overall philosophy is that gifts need to be useful and have a good lifespan to them. So many times we have purchased things for our son that were only played with a few times and then forgotten. But there have been successful purchases (mega bloks purchased years ago are still used at least every other day by our son). We will take more time to think through every purchase.

Our tentative budget? $150. I say tentative because other things may pop up. More about that tomorrow. This budget does not include purchases for Toys for Tots or anything like that. It is only for gifts for our family and friends.

It will be tight, but I think it can definitely be done. What about you? Are you scaling back holiday spending this year?

Less Credit Card Junk Mail – Woohoo!

by Tricia

I don’t know how many times I’ve called my credit card companies and asked them to quit sending me junk mail about new cards and offers. It’s a waste of paper and it’s a waste of electricity to shred them all. I also get tons of new credit card offers in the mail, thanks to our new business.

This article from MSN made me smile:

Expect Less Junk Mail as Marketers Cut Back

Not only are credit card companies scaling back, so are some other companies that send out catalogs. That makes me happy because so many catalogs received just go in the trash upon arrival without even looking through them. We’re in debt – we don’t need to look at them! Especially those catalogs with neat doohickeys that look so cool but would probably only be used a few times and then collect dust.

Although I love getting mail every day, we were getting way too much junk in our mail. It was becoming too wasteful and getting off their lists was sometimes impossible.

Blogging Away Debt Blogging Away Debt follows real people on their journey to debt freedom — with tips on the debt snowball, budgeting, cutting expenses, and staying motivated.

How Many Days Until Christmas Again?

Less Credit Card Junk Mail – Woohoo!